Body panels for automotive vehicles typically comprise a formed outer sheet layer and a formed inner sheet layer which have complementary shapes and are attached at their peripheral edges in forming a hollow body panel structure. Such two-layer panels may serve as door panels, deck lids, tailgates, or the like, and the panel members are shaped to serve both utilitarian and decorative functions when assembled into a vehicle body structure.
Metal forming processes have been used to provide body panels of various shapes for automotive vehicles. But there remains a need to provide high quality panels with more complex shapes while maintaining acceptable forming costs.